When the new crossguard lightsaber showed up in the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer, many regarded it with scorn. Stephen Colbert was quick to come to the weapon's defense, but a lot of people still doubted its practicality. What we really needed was a demonstration. Now we've got one – and it's pretty convincing.

YouTuber Thrand collaborated with his friends Eldgrimr and Marquez to test whether a crossguard lightsaber would be more hazardous to the one who wields it than that wielder's opponent. By dipping the cross guard (aka "quillons") in thick, white paint, Thrand & co. were able to demonstrate its incredible utility:

Impressive, right? Well, it didn't exactly settle things. Commenters complained that the weapon in the video was not representative of the lightsaber that appeared in the trailer. So Thrand and Eldgrimer put together a lightweight mockup, with a form factor closely resembling the lightsaber in the Episode VII trailer. The result was even more convincing:

Excellent! So the debate over the crossguard's safety/design/practicality is officially over now, right everyone?